Having Monday blues? Try this out!

06 Mar 2018#Mental health

It’s Monday. For many people, Mondays set the tone for the rest of the week. If Monday goes well, you’re off to a good start and there is hope for the next four days. But if Monday turns sour, chances are you’ll give up on the rest of the week before it even happens.
I’m not sure what your day has been like so far. Maybe it’s been one of those surprisingly awesome Mondays—the driver in front of you paid for your breakfast in the drive through line, you arrived at work with five minutes to spare, and this time you didn’t even forget to bring your lunch! Or, maybe you’re in the middle of a Monday meltdown because the car wouldn’t start this morning, your kids were late for school, and to top it all off, you spilled coffee all over your brand new shirt.
Whatever the case, we all have a decision to make about how we will face the rest of the week. No matter how kind or how cruel your Monday has been to you, tomorrow is a brand new day. I am learning that every day is a gift, and I want to face tomorrow as though it were a clean slate. So here are 5 thoughts on how to win for the rest of the week, even if you got off to a slow start.
1. Be intentional
Don’t just float through your week in survival mode. If Monday was rough, put some thought into what would make Tuesday better. Make choices that will improve your week and follow through on them. Choose to be grateful for the things that have gone well, instead of being miserable about all the things that went wrong. If you are battling severe depression, I understand that this may seem completely impossible to you. So maybe your “intentional” looks a bit different. Maybe your “intentional” just looks like choosing to get dressed instead of staying in your pajamas all day. Maybe your “intentional” looks like picking up a pen and writing down 3 simple things that you can be grateful for today, such as your home, clean drinking water, and your phone (or whatever device you are reading this on). Or maybe it looks like something completely different. But wherever you are at today, regardless of your circumstances, why not give yourself permission to be intentional this week?
2. Do yourself a favor and get some sleep
I am so thankful that sleep exists! There have been so many times in my life when I have gone to bed with a chip on my shoulder and woken up feeling like a new person. Sleep is designed to rejuvenate and regenerate the human body, and I for one really love taking advantage of that! I know… life is busy. You’d like to get more sleep, but you just don’t have time. I feel that way too. But the reality is that there will always be dishes to do, laundry to fold, projects to work on, events to attend, and deadlines to meet. The problem is that if you deny yourself the sleep you need, you won’t be in a healthy enough frame of mind to accomplish any of those things, and they will eventually pile up to the point where you will melt down completely. And no one wants that! So let’s do ourselves a favor this week and get some sleep!
3. Work hard
There are a lot of things that can tank your week, and hating your job is definitely one of them. But what if—just hear me out for a second—you decided this week that you were going to work hard, regardless of how much you love or hate your job? What if you just decided that you were going to do what it takes to get the job done, even with the stuff you’ve been procrastinating on for weeks? (I am speaking to myself here as much as to anyone else!) What could possibly feel more satisfying than finally getting those undesirable tasks off your to-do list once and for all? Let’s get down to business this week, make a conscious decision to work hard, and enjoy the pay-off!
4. Try something new
As I mentioned in Life Lessons: Escape Room Edition, trying new things can be really scary for me. But the more I decide to give new things a chance, the more I realize that I am braver than I thought I was. Why not take a chance and try something new this week? You might love it, or you might hate it. But either way, you will know that you had the courage to try, and you will be better for it.
5. Celebrate your victories
Sometimes it is easy to get so caught up in our insecurities, challenges, and failures, that we forget to celebrate all of the things we are accomplishing every single day. Don’t make the mistake of overlooking the small victories. And don’t keep them to yourself! When you do something awesome—or even something small that you weren’t able to do before—tell someone about it and celebrate it with them! Maybe your day was awful, but you chose to be kind to the grocery store clerk instead of snapping at her. That is a victory, and you can celebrate that! Don’t let your mistakes overshadow your successes. Take some time to reflect on your day, and give yourself a pat on the back for all that you accomplished.
We do not have to be victims when it comes to a bad Monday. Let’s make an effort this week to look at each day as a gift and an opportunity to experience joy, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. And let’s be sure to cheer one another on in the process!
How do you set yourself up for a successful week? Or what do you do to recover from a bad day? Leave me a comment and let me know what works for you!
Source: https://makeitultrapsychology.wordpress.com